Sacred Works

Schubert is not particularly well known for his sacred works, but again he produced such works at various times during his life, the last a few months before his death. Some of the early works were performed at his local church (and indeed were written specifically for performance there), but few of the later works were performed during his lifetime. Some ran into trouble with Church authorities for inconsistencies in the word settings (he never did set the words 'I believe in one Catholic and Apostolic Church'), and as such were not authorised for performance during services. Nevertheless, there are some wonderful settings in the Masses, and the incomplete cantata 'Lazarus' was years ahead of its time.